FFF Campaign Welcomes Labor MPs Call to Ban Fracking in WA. Posted by brett glossop 185sc on July 11, 2016.
The Frack Free Future campaign is pleased that the push to stop fracking in WA continues to gain momentum, with two Labor MPs the latest to join the call. Collie-Preston MP Mick Murray and Upper House Member for the South West Sally Talbot have responded to community concern and called for a ban on fracking in the South West. There are currently two gas exploration licenses granted in the South West region which could potentially open the door to gas companies using fracking to drill through the water table to access the gas underneath. “Opposition to fracking in WA is growing, as people recognise the threat the gas industry poses to South West farms, water resources and tourism industry,” said Frack Free Future spokesman Jules Kirby. “The South West has a reputation for being clean and green, and the local communities do not want to put that at risk by allowing companies to pump chemicals into the ground and through their water sources.
“Fracking poses an unacceptable risk to ground water, and the people of the South West do not want to take the chance of their ground water being poisoned by this accident-prone industry.” Mr Kirby said the Department of Mines and Petroleum had recently written a misleading open letter to South West residents in an attempt to soften them up to accept fracking in the future. “The DMP and the companies which own the exploration licenses claim they are not pursuing fracking in the South West, but if that’s the case, why did they need to write an open letter trying to convince residents that fracking is safe?” he said “And if there really are no plans to frack the South West in the future, why won’t the DMP agree to stipulate no fracking in the exploration licenses?” Mr Kirby called on Liberal and National MPs to join with the local Labor MPs to be part of a bipartisan push to protect the region from fracking.